Newell's Shearwater, photograph by Lindsay Young

Lindsay Young (Pacific Rim Conservation, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA) and colleagues have published on hand rearing translocated chicks of the Critically Endangered Newell’s Shearwater Puffinus newelli and Endangered Hawaiian Petrel Pterodroma sandwichensis within a predator-proof fence on the Hawaiian island of Kauai as part of the Nihoku Ecosystem Restoration Project.

An extract from the chapter’s Introduction follows:

“The Critically Endangered Newell’s shearwater (Puffinus newelli) and the Endangered Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroma sandwichensis) are Hawaii’s only endemic seabirds.  Both species are rapidly declining due to collisions with power lines, light attraction, predation by invasive feral mammals and introduced Barn owls and habitat degradation by feral ungulates and invasive plants. Given the challenges in protecting nesting birds in their rugged, montane habitat, it has long been desirable to create protected populations of both species in more accessible locations. Translocation has been part of recovery planning since 1983 and translocation to predator exclusion fences was ranked as the highest priority action in the interagency five year Action Plan for Newell’s shearwater and Hawaiian petrel.”

The publication concludes:

The translocation aspect (removal of chicks from natal burrows and hand rearing until fledging) was highly successful, with fledging rates of 100% for Newell’s shearwater (N=67/67) and 98% for Hawaiian petrel (N=87/90).  It is still too early to determine ultimate success, which would entail recruitment of breeding individuals to the release site.”

Hawaiian Petrel

Reference:

Young, L.C., Kohley, C.R., Dalton, M., Knight, M., VanderWerf, E.A., Fowlke, L., Dittmar, E., Raine, A.F., Vynne, M., Nevins, H., Hall, S. & Mitchell, M. 2021.  Translocation of Newell’s shearwaters and Hawaiian petrels to create new colonies on Kaua`i, Hawai`i, USA.  In: Soorae, P.S. (Ed.).  Global Conservation Translocation Perspectives: 2021. Case Studies from around the Globe.  Gland: IUCN SSC Conservation Translocation Specialist Group.  pp. 98-102.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 28 March 2021

Black-browed Albatross, Macquarie Island, photograph by Melanie Wells

Jaimie Cleeland (Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia) and colleagues have published open access in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science on threats facing Black-browed Thalassarche melanophris, Grey-headed T. chrysostoma, Light-mantled Phoebetria palpebrata and Wandering Diomedea exulans Albatrosses breeding on Australia’s sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Climate change, fisheries and invasive species represent three pervasive threats to seabirds, globally. Understanding the relative influence and compounding nature of marine and terrestrial threats on the demography of seabird communities is vital for evidence-based conservation. Using 20 years of capture-mark-recapture data from four sympatric species of albatross (black-browed Thalassarche melanophris, grayheaded T. chrysostoma, light-mantled Phoebetria palpebrata and wandering Diomedea exulans) at subantarctic Macquarie Island, we quantified the temporal variability in survival, breeding probability and success. In three species (excluding the wandering albatross because of their small population), we also assessed the influence of fisheries, oceanographic and terrestrial change on these rates. The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) explained 20.87–29.38% of the temporal variability in survival in all three species and 22.72–28.60% in breeding success for black-browed and gray-headed albatross, with positive SAM events related to higher success. The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) Index explained 21.14–44.04% of the variability in survival, with higher survival rates following La Niña events. For black-browed albatrosses, effort in south-west Atlantic longline fisheries had a negative relationship with survival and explained 22.75–32.21% of the variability. Whereas increased effort in New Zealand trawl fisheries were related to increases in survival, explaining 21.26–28.29 % of variability. The inclusion of terrestrial covariates, reflecting extreme rainfall events and rabbit-driven habitat degradation, explained greater variability in trends breeding probability than oceanographic or fisheries covariates for all three species. These results indicate managing drivers of demographic trends that are most easily controlled, such as fisheries and habitat degradation, will be a viable option for some species (e.g., black-browed albatross) but less effective for others (e.g., light-mantled albatross). Our results illustrate the need to integrate fisheries, oceanographic and terrestrial processes when assessing demographic variability and formulating the appropriate management response.”

With thanks to Barry Baker.

Reference:

Cleeland, J.B., Pardo, D., Raymond, B., Tuck, G.N., McMahon, C.R., Phillips, R.A., Alderman, R., Lea, M.-A. & Hindell, M.A. 2021.  Disentangling the influence of three major threats on the demography of an albatross community.  Frontiers in Marine Science doi: 10.3389/fmars.2021.578144.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 27 March 2021

Safe from sea-level rise: a Laysan Albatross and its downy chick in the Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge; photograph by Jacqueline Olivera

The Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge on the Hawaiian island of Kauai supports a breeding colony of Laysan Albatrosses or Mōlī Phoebastria immutabilis (Near Threatened) that is safe from sea-level rise and is protected from pigs and dogs by a fence.

The 2020/21 breeding season looks like to be heading to being a good one with 129 eggs laid (not 126 as previously reported) compared to 121 in the 2018/19 season and 116 in 2019/20.  A total of 87 eggs hatched, giving a hatching success of 67.4% according to the Kilauea Point Natural History Association.

A banded Laysan Albatross stands over its egg in the Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge; photograph by Jacqueline Olivera

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 26 March 2021

The Pitt Island Antipodean Albatross chick - now being tracked at sea

Satellite tracking of albatrosses and large petrels at sea has become commonplace.  A recent publication reports on no less than 10 108 tracks from 5775 individual birds of 39 species.  Most of the birds tracked will have been hitherto anonymous but every now and then birds known for other reasons get to be tracked.  Here are two examples from New Zealand’s Department of Conservation.

Pitt Island’s Antipodean Albatross

The only Antipodean Albatross Diomedea antipodensis chick to fledge from Pitt Island, part of the Chatham Islands, in seven years is now “out there” revealing it’s at-sea travels online.  The globally Endangered and Nationally Critical chick was banded and satellite-tagged on 23 December 2020 after it had already walked away from its nest on the slopes of Mount Hakepa.  By 9 March it had flown over 19 000 km, spending its time to the east of New Zealand.  View the flight map and read more here.

Taiaroa Head’s ‘Royal Cam’ Northern Royal Albatrosses

The 2020/21 Royal Cam pair at their nest site, photograph by Sharyn Broni

Farther south is the intensively studied and watched (by a 24-hour streaming camera) mainland colony of globally Endangered and nationally Naturally Uncommon Northern Royal Albatrosses D. sanfordi at Taiaroa/Head/Pukekura on New Zealand’s South Island.  This season’s ‘Royal Cam’ pair - known as LGL (female) and LGK (male) from the colour band combinations on their legs - have also been fitted with satellite trackers.  They are currently flying back and forth catching food for their post-guard chick, in the main staying close the eastern coastline of South Island (click here for their flight maps).  You can watch them (and their current chick) at their nest online here.

Recent tracks of the 2020/21 Royal Cam pair: blue - female (LGL), red - male (LGK)

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 25 March 2021